University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources Jack Payne is set to retire this summer.
After a national search process, four finalists to fill his position were invited to the Gainesville campus and to the Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred to meet with faculty, staff, students and stakeholders.
Two of the candidates were able to visit in person before COVID-19 restrictions went into effect. These candidates were Alan Sams, dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences and director of the Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station at Oregon State University, and Nick Place, dean and director of the Florida Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida.
The third candidate, Scott Angle, director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, United States Department of Agriculture, met with stakeholders by distance methods on March 30.
The fourth candidate, Paul Patterson, dean of the College of Agriculture and director of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Stationa at Auburn University, has withdrawn from the process.
Following are links to the three candidate presentations:
Alan Sams presentation
Nick Place presentation
Scott Angle presentation
Florida citrus growers and other agricultural stakeholders in the state are being asked to provide their input on the three candidates. Please give your feedback by April 3 by taking the surveys at the following links:
Alan Sams survey
Nick Place survey
Scott Angle survey
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